Blackdown Tableland National Park, Nature reserve in Central Highlands Regional, Australia.
Blackdown Tableland National Park protects a sandstone plateau that rises abruptly from the plains about 576 km northwest of Brisbane. Creeks such as Stony Creek and Mimosa Creek have cut gorges and waterfalls into the rock, the largest being Rainbow Falls (Gudda Gumoo), a 40 m drop. The plateau sits where the Shotover, Expedition and Dawson Ranges meet, and its open forests, heath and ferns include plants and animals found nowhere else.
The Ghungalu people are the traditional owners of the Blackdown Tableland, and their rock art is found in the park. Access remained very limited until the Queensland Forest Department built a road in 1969; the park entrance is now reached from a turn-off 11 km west of Dingo on the Capricorn Highway. The national park was formally established on 30 March 2006.
The park lies within the traditional home of the Ghungalu people, and their rock art can be found at sites in the park. The Wadja language is associated with this country, including Blackdown Tableland, the Comet River and the Expedition Range, and with the towns of Woorabinda, Springsure and Rolleston. Walking tracks from the camping and lookout areas lead to heritage sites.
Access is via a turn-off 11 km west of Dingo on the Capricorn Highway; before a road was cut by the Queensland Forest Department in 1969, reaching the plateau was very difficult. Camping is permitted at Munall campground on Mimosa Creek, and picnic facilities are at Yaddamen Dhina lookout. Walking tracks lead to lookouts, heritage sites and creeks.
The 1969 road built by the Queensland Forest Department was the first practical access to the plateau; before it, the tableland was reached only with difficulty. The eastern tableland receives about 1,500 mm of rain a year, and dense fog can cover the plateau. Some creeks are rain-fed and dry up, while spring-fed ones keep flowing.
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